Stuffed Peppers

Ingredients

3 cups black bean and corn salsa

1 pound ground turkey meat

1 cup rice

6 bell peppers

2 cloves garlic, minced

¼ cup diced bell pepper

¼ cup diced onion

1 can mixed diced tomatoes and green chilies

1 cup plain Greek yogurt

1 tsp salt

½ tsp black pepper

3 tsp olive oil

shredded cheddar cheese, if desired

salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

1.   Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Cut the tops off of the bell peppers. Remove the ribs and seeds from inside. 
3. Rub the insides of the peppers with 1-2 spoons of olive oil and sprinkle lightly with salt. Put in a baking dish in the oven for 10-15 minutes.
4. Heat the remaining olive oil in a skillet over medium to medium-high heat. Saute the onions, garlic, and diced bell pepper. I get the diced bell pepper for this from the tops I cut off of the 6 peppers.
5. Add the turkey to the pan and brown.
6. Add salsa and canned tomatoes and chilies to turkey mixture. Stir to combine. Let simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat.
7. Add cooked rice and Greek yogurt to turkey mixture. Stir to combine.
8. Divide the mixture evenly between the 6 empty bell peppers. Bake for 20 minutes.
9. Remove peppers from oven. Top, if desired, with cheddar cheese. Return to oven for 10 minutes.
10. Serve hot with sides of additional salsa or Greek yogurt, if you want. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Tips

The 6 bell peppers I made were really full - overflowing, in fact. There is probably enough here to decently fill 7-8 bell peppers if you so choose. 

You can use sour cream instead of plain Greek yogurt, any color bell peppers, and beef or sausage instead of turkey, if you want.. You can also use store bought or homemade salsa. Leave out the meat entirely for a vegetarian version. You can also substitute black beans for the meat. Leave the cheese and yogurt out for a non-dairy or vegan version.

Recipe Reviews: Alton Brown's Southern Biscuits

I thought it would be good to have a space to post links to and notes on other people's recipes I try. I'll post links to the original recipes, notes on any tweaks or adjustments I made, and, where I can, pictures of the final result.

First up, Alton Brown's Southern Biscuit Recipe. This is probably my favorite biscuit recipe. I make it regularly and serve them with all sorts of toppings: butter, honey, homemade apple butter, homemade berry jam, etc. They even make great components to homemade chicken biscuits! Usually when I make them I make a double batch and I've made a few changes based on what I usually have in the house. So, when I make them, I use:

4 c unbleached AP flour
8 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp salt
8 tbsp butter (cold!)
2 c skim milk or 2 c skim milk minus 2 tbsp, plus 2 tbsp white vinegar

I've also made these successfully with soy milk and a non-dairy butter substitute. They don't get as flaky and fluffy, but they are still tasty. 

Then I just follow Alton's instructions. I usually cut out the biscuits with a drinking glass and that works just fine if you don't have a biscuit cutter. They always come out delicious!

Chocolate Chip Brownies

Ingredients
2 cups AP flour
1/2 cup dark chocolate cocoa powder
1/2 cup cocoa powder
3 cup granulated sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
4 eggs
1 cup corn oil
1/2 cup applesauce
2 tbsp vanilla
1 cup chocolate chips

Directions
1. Pre-heat oven to 350* F. Butter and flour a 13x9 inch pan.
2. Combine flour and cocoa powders
3. Take two tablespoons of the flour-cocoa mix and put them in a Ziploc bag. Add the chocolate chips, close the bag, and shake until coated. Set aside.
4. Add sugar, salt, and baking powder to flour-cocoa mix and stir.
5. In a separate bowl, beat eggs.
6. Add oil, applesauce, and vanilla to eggs and stir to combine.
7. Add wet ingredients to dry and stir to combine.
8. Empty the bag with the chocolate chips into the batter (including any extra flour and cocoa powder) and stir.
9. Pour batter into pan and bake at 350* F for 30-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
10. Let them cool a bit before you cut them.

Tips
1. You can use any kinds of chocolate chips. I like a combination of mini-semi-sweet chocolate chips and regular sized white chocolate chips. You can also use other chips like butterscotch, peanut butter, or chocolate peppermint. If you want, you can also use walnuts or pecans for this. You can also use non-dairy versions.
2. You can use all dark chocolate cocoa powder or all regular cocoa powder if you don't have both.
3. Instead of buttering and flouring the pan by hand, you can use the sprays made for baking (they have some flour in them already). Do not just use a regular Pam spray with just oil/butter, it won't work as well.

Crockpot BBQ Chicken Sandwiches

Or as my husband calls them, Margaret's Method BBQ Chicken Sandwiches.

Ingredients
2 1/2 cups BBQ sauce
1 cup beer
1 tbsp whiskey
1 1/2 lb chicken meat

buns or white bread to make sandwiches

Directions
1. Whisk together BBQ sauce, beer, and whiskey.
2. Pour sauce into a crock pot, add the chicken meat.
3. Cook on high heat for 5 hours or on low heat for 8-9 hours.
4. Pull chicken meat out of the sauce, place on a cutting board, and pull apart with forks or your hands.
5. Serve on bread or buns.

Tips
1. Okay, so this isn't really real BBQ, but it is tasty.
2. For the BBQ sauce, I like two different options. The first is a mix of Bull's-Eye's Carolina style and Original. The second is homemade BBQ sauces.
3. For the beer, I like Rogue's Dead Guy Ale.
4. For the chicken, you can use white meat, dark meat, or a combination of the two.

Apple Tarts

For this recipe, I was feeling lazy and so I used pre-made tart shells.
I was able to fill 8 mini tart shells with this recipe.

Ingredients

2 apples, peeled and cored (I used Jazz apples, which I adore for baking.)
2-4 teaspoons granulated sugar
1-2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 cup apple jelly
4 teaspoons butter

Directions

1. Thinly slice the apples and then cut the slices in half. Fill your tart shells with the apples.
2. Sprinkle cinnamon and sugar across the top of the tarts.
3. Put 1/2 teaspoon of butter on the top of each tart.
4. Cover the edges of the tart shells with foil so they don't burn and put the tarts on a lightly greased baking sheet.
5. Bake the tarts at 350º for 10-20 minutes or until the apples have softened.
6. While the tarts are baking, melt the apple jelly on the stove top.
7. Pour the apple jelly over the apples in each tart shell.
8. Allow tarts to cool and set in the refrigerator.

Tips

1. This also works with pears and you can also use other types of jelly - feel free to mix and match flavors.
2. To make sure this is vegetarian or non-dairy, be sure to check the ingredients on the tart shells and jelly.

Rosemary, Lemon, and Thyme Potatoes

Ingredients

4 cups new potatoes, roughly chopped into large pieces
1 teaspoon rosemary, minced
1 teaspoon lemon thyme, minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon minced onion
½ cup Italian salad dressing

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 450º.
2. Mix olive oil, garlic, onion, rosemary, lemon thyme, and Italian salad dressing.
3. Toss potatoes to coat (a large Ziploc bag works great for this).
4. Spread the mixture in a large baking dish.
5. Bake for 30 minutes, covered in foil. Remove foil and bake for an additional 30-40 minutes, stirring occasionally, until potatoes are tender when poked.

Tips

Check out the ingredients for the Italian salad dressing you're using if you're trying to make a vegan version of this! Some contain cheeses!

Grasshoppers in a Blanket

Ingredients

1 can refrigerated crescent rolls or refrigerated thin crust pizza dough
1 bundle asparagus
flour

Directions

1. Grease and flour a cookie sheet. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. 
2. Flour some space on the counter top. Remove refrigerated crescent rolls or pizza crust from the tube and spread flat on the floured counter. If you are using crescent rolls, pinch the seams of the crescent rolls together, flour the surface of the dough, and roll them flat and slightly thinner. Cut the dough into small rectangles (approximately 1/2 inch by 1 1/2 inches). 
3. Cut asparagus into small pieces, about 1 to 1 1/2 inches long.
4. Roll each piece in a rectangle of dough. Press down the end of the dough to seal.
5. Place each piece with the seal down on the pre-greased cookie sheet. You can place these pieces close together on the cookie sheet, but do not let the dough touch as it will puff up some. 
6. Bake for 8-12 minutes until dough is golden-brown. Can serve hot or cool. Can store in the refrigerator and re-heat later in the oven.

Tips

1. If you are looking to make a vegan or non-dairy version of these, be sure to check the ingredients on the crescent rolls or pizza dough. Some versions contain milk or butter, but some store brands and some Pillsbury versions are non-dairy and use soy.
2. Younger, thinner asparagus works best for this.

Chocolate Spice Cookies

Ingredients

1 cup butter or non-dairy substitute
1/2 cup shortening
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg
3 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp paprika
3 tbsp cocoa powder

Directions

1 Cream butter and shortening until smooth.
2. Add vanilla and sugars and blend well. Mix in an egg.
3. In another bowl, mix flour and spices.
4. Gradually add dry mix into wet (in about three batches). It may look a bit crumbly.
5. Cool mixture in the fridge for at least 30 minutes (it can sit overnight if you want to make the cookies the next day).
6. Preheat oven to 350º.
7. Butter and flour two cookie sheets, sprinkle the countertop with flour.
8. Divide dough into three batches. Work with one at a time, keeping the others in the refrigerator.
9. Knead dough until soft.
10. Roll dough out until it is 1/4 inch thick and cut it into shapes and place on cookie sheets.
11. These cookies don't spread out too much, so you can put them a little closer together than other cookies. Bake 10-15 minutes.
12. Let cookies cool on tray for 5-10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.

Tips

Use a non-dairy butter substitute for a non-dairy cookie.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread/Cake

This is a "bread" in the same way a banana bread is - in other words, more of a cake-like texture

Ingredients

2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
4 beaten eggs
1 tbsp vanilla
1 can pumpkin puree
4 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp ginger
3/4 cup chocolate chips

Optional
3/4 cup walnut pieces
substitute 2 tbsp of cocoa powder for 2 tbsp of flour

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350º. Put a baking pan 3/4 full with water on bottom rack.
2. Mix sugars, oil, eggs, and vanilla. Mix in pumpkin.
3. In a separate bowl, mix flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, cloves, and cocoa powder (if desired).
4. Gradually add in dry ingredients to wet, a few spoons at a time. Leave a few spoons of flour in reserve.
5. Toss chocolate chips and nuts, if desired, in remaining flour mix. This will help keep them distributed evenly throughout the bread/cake and not all settled at the bottom.
6. Pour into 2-3 greased loaf pans, 1 large bundt pan, or 1 cake pan.
7. Put in oven on top rack over water bath. Bake for around 60 minutes. (Note: It will take closer to 90 minutes if you put it all in a bundt pan. And when you pierce it with a knife or toothpick then it will still be gooey, but it is done!)
8. Cool in pans 10 minutes before moving to wire racks to cool.

Tips

You can use almond pieces in place of or in addition to the walnut pieces.
Leave out all of the nuts for a non-nut version (duh, I know). Or leave out the chocolate chips or substitute non-dairy dark chocolate or carob chips for a non-dairy version.
This works pretty much equally well for breakfast or dessert.

Der Apfelstreuselkuchen

Ingredients

2 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
3 tbsp brown sugar
1/2 cup melted butter or non-dairy substitute
1 cup sugar
2 eggs, beaten
2 tsp vanilla
2 cups diced apples
1/2 cup water

Topping Ingredients

1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
2 tbsp flour
2 tbsp butter, cold

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350º.
2. Mix flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
3. Add melted butter, eggs, sugar, vanilla, and water. Mix until smooth.
4. Add apples and stir.
5. Spoon into muffin cups.
6. For topping, mix brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon. Cut butter into mix. Sprinkle on muffins.
7. Bake for 20-30 minutes.

Tips

For a non-dairy version, use a non-dairy butter substitute.

Frozen Cookie Dough

Ingredients

1 cup butter
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tbsp vanilla
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 cup chocolate chips (optional)
1 1/2 cup walnut pieces (optional)
3 cups flour OR 1 1/2 cup flour and 1 1/2 cup oats

Directions

1. Pre-line cookie sheet with wax paper and make sure you have room for them in the freezer.
2. Blend butter until creamy. Add sugars, mix. Blend in eggs and vanilla.
3. In a separate bowl, mix flour (or flour and oats), baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.
4. Gradually add to wet ingredients.
5. Stir in chocolate chips and nuts.
6. Dust your hands with flour, roll dough into bite-sized balls.
7. Place on wax paper lined trays, as close to one another as possible without touching.
8. Freeze for 1-2 hours.
9. Move dough balls to a freezer-safe container and freeze to store.

Directions to Bake

1. Preheat oven for 350ºF and allow cookie dough balls to defrost some.
2. Put dough on lined cookie sheets.
2. Bake for 15-20 minutes.

Tips

1. To make non-dairy, use a non-dairy butter substitute (like non-dairy Smart Balance) and eliminate chocolate chips.
2. To make non-nut, eliminate walnuts.

Meatballs

Ingredients
1/2 pound ground beef and 1/2 pound ground turkey or 1 pound of either
1/2 cup dry bread crumbs
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1/4 tsp pepper
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp basil
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 minced garlic cloves
1 egg

Directions

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Mix all ingredients together.
3. Shape mixture into balls – approximately 1 inch in diameter if making cocktail meatballs or slightly larger 2 inch diameter balls for meatballs for spaghetti or subs.
4. Place in a greased baking dish or on a greased deep cookie sheet. Fit them tightly together.
5. Cook for approximately 20 minutes, longer for larger meatballs, until center is no longer pink.

Tips

To make a non-dairy version, use soy or goat's milk instead of regular milk. Be sure to check the ingredients in the bread crumbs for dairy.